so im sold on the needing a good grinder bit. But using my good grinder what do ppl think will make a better mug of coffee, using the grind in a french press or using the machine & using the espresso to make americano?

You can not imagine how many flavors are robbed from the coffee by the filter. Try an Americano and you will be sold forever on espresso. Of course, this is just one person's opinion but I was absolutely floored the first time I tried an Americano.

+1 for americano (actually, I think I can vote for my Mom too, as she loves FP, but when she comes to my house and has a choice between that and americano, she always chooses the americano). I used to love FP, but mine now just sits around waiting for guests who have to make their own coffee while I'm at work. One day, I'll bring it here, so I can have good coffee throughout the day.

.Always remember the most important thing is what ends up in your cup!

LOL, the problem with this idea is that you're only finding out what other people like! :-D I can't stand Americanos, but love Caffe Cremas. Between your two choices, my vote would definitely be for drip.

When I drink coffee at work, I only drink FP (I brought my thermal press in to work).

"Just what I need - another 'geek' label..."- my friend Mark, on being told of Coffee Geek's existence

Fresh ground coffee from fresh roast beans will be a big improvement over what you currently drink. Moving to a French press is not a big expense and, as others have written, will give you time to figure out which way is up in the world of espresso.

Making a good coffee from a French press is dead simple. Making a good Americano requires making a good espresso. That takes some practice and the time to get used to what ever machine you buy.

Who knows, maybe after you try coffee from fresh beans you will decide it's not worth the effort. One step at a time.

Unless you're sure that you really want espresso I would consider focusing on brewed coffee. Espresso has many more variables and is much more involved.Brewed coffee is much more finite.With a $100-$150 grinder and high quality fresh beansand

1) a French Press or Esproor2) a Clever Coffee Dripper ($16)or3) a really good drip machine (?$100-$200) -- more convenient but perhaps a notch below the other methods.you can make top notch coffee.

Then you can later decide if you want to go the espresso route once you have a better handle on the whole coffee thing.

Regarding Americano vs. drip it's a matter of taste but I doubt to many coffeegeeks would recommend getting into espresso primarily for Americanos since you can do so well with brewed coffee.

With espresso your starting budget is probably about $1000 and that's for a very capable but far from top notch set up.If you're sure now that you want to expand into espresso, starting with an espresso capable grinder does make sense.

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